Pears in Red Wine
by KraftySimmer
Summary: Submission for Facebook group challenge. Sirius returns home from a mission to a little surprise but he has a surprise of his own as well. Will the love he has come to realize hold strong, or will it crumble in the heat of war? AU one-shot.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything you recognize belonging to the Harry Potter Universe. That belongs to J.K. Rowling and her affiliates. I do own the character Valerie Pearce.

**AN:** Hello! This is an entry for a story contest being held by the facebook page: I love Everything Harry Potter. Look them up. They are holding a little contest, anything goes, so this is my entry. Special thanks to my BETA Sweetflag! You're amazing!

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><p>It was times like these that made Valerie forget about the war: the war that raged on silently, the war that wouldn't make Muggle school textbooks, but a war thatwould shape the whole world nonetheless. It was a war that made the survivors live in a silent fear they couldn't admit, for if they did, then they had lost hope and the Dark Lord had won another battle. Since Valerie and her friends had left school, she felt as if a horrible darkness was growing closer and closer to them. Whispers danced through their ears, and it was harder to trust that the person you had just passed on the street wouldn't turn around and strike you down.<p>

At graduation Valerie and her friends had been approached by their Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. At that time, the darkness had still seemed far away, although each of them had felt the effects of that darkness. Professor Dumbledore told them of a secret organisation he had created, an organisation that was dedicated to stopping the darkness. The boys, James, Sirius, Remus and Peter had instantly stepped up. Marlene and Alice, along with her boyfriend Frank, had joined as well. Even Lily signed up. Valerie wasn't sure, she had never been good at dueling, and she doubted she could be of use to the Order. In the end, she had signed up as well, staying home on anchor missions to keep up appearances and providing support for those whose loved ones were out on dangerous missions.

Lily and Valerie started a little cooking group within the Order. They provided meals for the Order meetings (for who knew when they last had a proper meal) and brought food and other things over to members who were having hard times. Despite the front the two girls put on, when they were alone, they cuddled together on the couch, reading the few letters James and Sirius were able to send them. Remus would send them both letters as well, and Peter had all but disappeared from their lives. They worried about their little friend, but he kept quiet with whatever was bugging him, and even the bond Peter and Valerie had together couldn't get him to speak.

The only thing it seemed that Valerie had to look forward to were the times when Sirius came back from his missions. He had a habit of signing up for every mission, along with his best mate, James. Together, the two of them became almost like poster boys for the Order (should advertising their existence ever be possible) and together, the two boys rallied the others, getting them excited for their own missions.

Valerie wasn't stupid of course. She knew Sirius only came home to her because there wasn't anyone else for him. Couples littered the Order, as people pulled together to comfort each other. Marlene was still single, but she would have kicked Sirius' ass for even thinking of coming to her bed. No…Valerie wasn't stupid. Her relationship with Sirius wasn't anything like the others. It wasn't the pure love that seemed to come from Lily and James, or even the fierce trust and loyalty that Frank and Alice displayed. No, hers and Sirius' was one of easiness, one of simplicity and one that was just… there. Valerie loved Sirius, there was no denying that. Her simple crush from third-year had bloomed into a romantic love, but her mind reminded her heart every minute that he didn't love her back.

It was a fact. He didn't. He couldn't be in love with her. He just…couldn't.

Sirius was due home any moment. His last letter said his mission with James and Remus should wrap up in about a week, and Dumbledore had confirmed they would return home during yesterday's meeting. She knew little about his missions, as the only person who had all the details were Dumbledore and the ones he sent. It was safer that way, should someone be kidnapped…like…like the Prewett brothers. They hadn't been technically kidnapped, but Intel came back saying it had been a kidnapping mission. The twin brothers had gone down fighting off five Death Eaters, and poor Molly Weasley…well, she hadn't been to a meeting since.

A knock came from the front door of her flat. She was sure it was Sirius, but the darkness liked to play its own hellish tricks. Picking up her wand, she slowly approached the door. Should it be someone she didn't recognise, they didn't need to know she was home. Unless on an anchor mission, all members had been instructed to keep their lights at home dimmed low. It was harder to tell, that way, if someone was home. Valerie looked through the peephole to see Sirius standing outside her door. Her heart soared that he was all right, and it took most of her willpower to keep from opening the door and hugging him.

She held her wand up, her hand on the doorknob, ready to attack (even if she was pants at it). "What was at the end of the last letter I sent to Sirius Black?"

She watched through the peephole as a small tinge came to Sirius' cheeks. The action had answered her question, but she still needed a spoken response. "Really, Val? You're going to ask me _that_?"

"Yes, now answer or you can't come in and have some of the fabulous dinner I made."

A whine came from the other side of the door, and Valerie smiled. One of the few things she was good at was cooking, and the boys knew it. They always looked forward to the potluck dinners she and Lily did each meeting, and each boy wolfed down as many helpings as they could before the girls chased them off so others could eat.

"Fine. It said that you had a very exotic dessert waiting for me at home, so I better come back in one piece."

Valerie unlocked her door, flung it open and wrapped her arms around Sirius' neck. "Thank Merlin you're safe…I hate it when you leave all the time."

Sirius kissed her temple and held her to him. "I know, luv, I know. I worry about you too, being here alone."

She pulled back slightly, and the two shared a kiss, reassuring the other that they were home, together again. Valerie smiled and led him into the house when they finally broke it. Sirius locked the door and put up a few wards to warn them if someone was headed to their door. "I've made your favorite, since you oh so subtly hinted at it in your last letter."

He wrapped his arms around Valerie's waist, pulling her towards him. "Can we skip dinner and go for dessert instead? I'm more interested in this surprise." His voice had gone husky, and the small beard that had grown scratched her neck, sending a shiver down her spine. She loved his gruffy look, especially when he first woke up and his voice was still deep from sleep.

She reluctantly pulled herself from his hold and waved her finger back and forth. "Nope. You have to be a good boy and eat your dinner first." She laughed at his fallen face, but it soon perked up as she brought over his plate. The two of them sat across from each other as they ate, their legs tangled together under the table and talked about whatever they could. Valerie was never allowed to know what Sirius' missions entailed, just as Sirius couldn't know if there were any specifics to her own anchor missions.

Dinner ended, and Sirius' steel coloured eyes lit up like a child at Christmas. "Now, don't be disappointed," Valerie warned lightly as she got up from the table.

Sirius' gaze turned to that of a questioning one. "Why would I be disappointed?"

"Because it's not what you think, you mutt."

"Oh? How do you know what I think it is?"

"Because I know you too well."

Valerie opened the freezer and took out two bowls she had placed in there earlier. In the bowls sat a pear that was red in colour, nestled into a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Chocolate fudge drizzled over it along with a red glaze that matched the red in the pears. She grabbed two spoons and set down the bowls on the table. Valerie watched as Sirius took a bite, hoping that it had turned out well.

"This is delicious! What is it?"

Valerie smiled and took a bite out of her own. It was delicious. The ice cream was smooth, while the frozen pear gave its own sour but also surprisingly sweet crunch to it. The chocolate fudge drizzle added itself to the ice cream.

"It's called Pears in Red Wine. Silly name, really. Normally, the recipe just has you boil the pears and baste them in red wine syrup and serve them alone. I added the ice cream and fudge and poured some of the left over glaze over the whole thing. Do you really like it? Mrs Baldwin next door taught it to me. I told her you go away on a lot of business trips and I wanted to do something special when you came home."

Sirius smiled and reached across the table to take her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "It's brilliant, Val."

"So, you're not disappointed?"

"Not at all. I can still get what I thought it was, anyway."

Valerie gave him a playful disappointed look, causing him to give out his bark-like laugh. Sirius had shown her his Animagus form before he had left for his first mission, as a way to reassure her that he could get away safely. Since then, Val had noticed some of his habits and actions echoed his dog form; his laugh was just one example. He pulled back his hand and his face turned serious, causing a bit of panic to rise in Valerie's gut.

"I wanted to do something special for you as well."

"Oh?"

He nodded and reached into one of the pockets of his robe. He pulled out a small, velvet box, and Valerie felt a million things at once. Her body froze, and yet her stomach tightened and filled with butterflies, doing all sorts of flips. Her heart fluttered and pounded in her chest, and her eyes widened into huge saucers. Her eyes darted from the box to the serious look on Sirius' face. What the bloody hell was going on? That _item_ couldn't be in that box because…because Sirius wasn't in love with her! He wasn't! He was only with her because it was easy, not because he loved her!

Sirius opened the box, and Valerie's heart stopped. Inside the velvet box sat a simple silver band. There were no diamonds or jewels of any kind on it; just a simple band, and yet it spoke more to Valerie than any diamond could. Her eyes watered, and she raised a shaky hand to her mouth, her other hand had gripped the front of her shirt. "S-S-Sirius?"

Their eyes locked, and Valerie saw so much raw emotion those steel grey eyes… more than she had ever seen before. It was like a thunderstorm of emotion, as each one strived to be recognised by her, strived to be seen and identified. Each one battled the other and Valerie couldn't make out what he was thinking. Her heart started up again in a panic. What the bloody hell did this ring mean?

"I know I haven't been the best friend or lover to you," he started. Valerie pulled herself out of his stormy depths and focused on the man in front of her instead. "We've had a rocky start ever since that day in the hospital wing after your attack. I was young and stupid and thought of life as just a game; a game where I could rule and play however I wanted.

"Evans was right, you know. I realise that now. I hurt you so many times during those two years, and yet you always came back to me with the same love and caring nature as when I had left you the last time. We've also been through a lot as well: your addiction… both of us unwanted by our families and left alone to fend for ourselves. When I left my family, I was so grateful that I had James to turn to and I knew that. When your Mum kicked you out, it was different. We were your friends, but you felt like you had no one to turn to for full support because only two people knew your secret then and we weren't exactly very helpful."

A sob escaped her mouth as Sirius mentioned her Uncle. Uncle David had been the only family member who had truly accepted Valerie. Her mother couldn't care less about her, and her father…who knew where the hell he was? The rest of her family ignored a child who hadn't chosen to be born out of wedlock or to be born with magical abilities… except for her Uncle. He cared for her while her mother dated random men, he always gave her his ear when she was upset and wanted to complain and his shoulder was always there for her to cry on.

The day he had found out about her addiction to cutting had been the worst day of her life. It was the one and only time she had ever seen the look of pure disappointment on his face, and though he tried to help her stop and gave her tricks to use instead, she still cut, and she hadn't stopped, not even now. Her friends and Sirius had all learned her secret at some point (either by seeing the scars on her left arm or by catching her in the act), Valerie had never once spoken to them about it. Sirius had been her biggest advocator to stop, and she tried her hardest, but there were still times she reached for her tool, though they were few and far between now.

Sirius stood up and brought his chair over to hers. She turned to face him, and he took her hand, wiping away the tears that had fallen. "Through every mission, the thought of coming home to you grew stronger and kept me going. I whined for your dinners when all we had were measly scraps of food that we had scavenged. I found myself longing for your added warmth at night on the cold floors, and with a final kick on my bum from James, I realised that I loved you. It's taken me almost four years to see what you've seen since day one."

He reached over and grabbed the box from the table and took out the ring. "Lily showed this to me one day. She called it a 'promise ring': said Muggle couples exchange them with each other with a promise to always be there. With this ring, I want to promise to be your best friend and your best lover. I want to be there for every single one of your low moments so I can fix them to be your best moments. I know you would prefer a wedding ring, but I want a chance to love you first like you have loved me." He looked into her rich brown eyes and gave her a smile. "So, will you accept this?"

Valerie smiled through her tears and held up her left hand to him. His smile widened, and he slipped the silver band onto her finger. She examined the ring, noticing some scratches on the surface. Bringing the ring closer to her eyes, she realised they were words etched into the silver. _'Let Me Be Your Shoulder –Sirius'_ She looked up at him and cried out softly, "Oh, Sirius," before her arms wove around his neck and the two sealed their promise with a kiss. It was times like these that made Valerie forget about the war.

Years later, as Valerie raised the child of her friends', James and Lily, she still wore the ring Sirius had given her. She kept faith in their love and promise, just like she had done in school. Sirius would never hurt a fly, and he most certainly would never have done anything to hurt the man he thought of as his brother _or_ his precious godson. But, she had no proof, and a silly little promise ring would not be enough to free her love. So, while she waited for the day they could be reunited once again, she filled her godson's head with stories about a stag, a werewolf, a rat and a black shaggy dog, who cared for each other and loved one another, and should little Harry ever meet this black dog, he shouldn't be afraid, for that dog loves him just as much as Valerie loves the dog.

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><p><strong>AN:<strong> I hoped you all enjoyed the story! Please leave a review!


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